by Beth Manz
"Listen to him, Cal," Emily agreed from behind the counter.
Cal stared into Blair's eyes, searching. Blair met his gaze evenly, knowing he was being judged. Knowing that what he did--what he said next--could possibly save Jim's life. Or forfeit it. Will he believe me? Will he see me as some sort of ally now?
"Tie him up!" Cal said finally, pacing away.
Blair crouched down behind Jim, exhaling a long sigh of relief as he did so. "You okay?" he whispered.
Jim turned his head toward him slightly, and the fresh bruising on his cheek became clearly visible to Blair. The detective nodded once, curtly, but gave no other indication that he knew Blair.
"Hurry up!" Cal stood over Jim again, glaring down at Blair.
Slowly, the sentinel placed his hands behind his back, wrists crossed.
Blair bit his lip as he wound the tape around his partner's wrists, binding them together as gently as he could. He'd been hoping he would be able to just wrap the tape loosely, but with Cal standing over him, watching his every move... "I'm sorry, Jim," he breathed when he was finished.
Jim's hands pulled into fists behind his back, a clear indication of his frustration over the entire situation.
"Do the rest!" Cal barked, gesturing with the barrel of his gun toward the bank employees and patrons. But before Blair could move, the phone on one of the desks rang. Cal jumped, taken off guard by the sound.
"That'll be the sheriff calling," Jim offered casually.
The three robbers exchanged quick, nervous glances with one another. "What do we do?" Arnie blurted out after a few tense seconds.
"We let it ring," Cal answered. Reaching down, he grabbed Blair by the arm and yanked him roughly to his feet. "I told you to do the rest of them," he ordered through clenched teeth, shoving Blair toward the bank manager.
Blair moved over to the small group of frightened people and began working. One by one, he bound their hands behind their backs, taking extra care with the elderly gentleman, who was clearly uncomfortable with his arms drawn behind him. "I'm sorry, sir," Blair kept repeating as he wound the tape around the man's frail wrists. "I'm sorry."
The phone, which had been ringing now for several minutes, suddenly stopped. The silence following the shrillness of the rings was almost palpable. The adult hostages, bound now and seated in a line with their backs against the counter, exchanged glances with one another, their eyes holding a myriad of emotions from quiet encouragement to abject terror.
Blair taped the little girl's wrists last, his hands shaking as he wrapped the tape gently around her tiny hands. She sobbed quietly as he worked. He knew it was irrational--that it made no sense--but binding a child like that made him feel almost as guilty as the three robbers. So he took special care and when he was finished he tucked the young girl up close to her mother's side. "Don't worry, sweetheart," he soothed, touching gently at her hair. "Just stay here by your mom and I'm sure you'll be fine."
The mother offered Blair a grateful smile. "Thank you," she whispered, leaning down and placing her cheek against her daughter's head.
Blair smiled back, warmed by the mother's understanding. "You'll be okay. I promise." Standing, he crossed back to Cal, who was pacing back and forth across the lobby like a caged animal. And just then, the phone began ringing again, the sound cutting through each of the people in the bank, rattling their nerves, heightening their anxiety.
"So what's your plan?" Blair asked, keeping his voice casual, hoping Cal was still willing to view him as one of them.
"I don't know," he said softly, shaking his head. "I'm thinking."
"How were you planning to get out of here?" Blair asked quietly, seriously, as though he were deeply interested in Cal's answer.
"We were going to come in, get the money fast, and get out." It was Emily who answered. Blair looked over to see that she had come out from behind the counter, a large cloth sack in her hand, stuffed with bills from the two cash drawers.
Blair looked from Emily to Cal and back again, schooling his features into an expression of surprise. "That's it?" he whispered out, his tone one of shocked disbelief, "That was your whole plan?"
Cal paced up to him, got right in his face. "You think you could do better?" he challenged.
Blair snorted in disbelief. "You bet I think I could do better. My cousin Robert and I? We used to knock over 7-Eleven's out in Seattle all the time. And we always had a plan--always knew just what to do in case we ever got stuck."
"What would you do?" Arnie asked from his post by the door. "If... if you were one of us... what would you do to get out of here?
"He's not one of us!" Cal shouted. "And who cares what he'd do!"
"I care." Emily crossed to Cal. "We're in trouble here and you know it. Listen to him, Cal. Please! Maybe he can help."
As Emily pleaded with Cal, Blair chanced a look at Jim. The sentinel was watching him carefully, his jaw clenched tight, and Blair could almost hear what was going through his mind. Sit down and shut up, Sandburg, before you get yourself killed! But Blair couldn't do that. Because they were listening to him. And as long as they were listening to him, he might be able to talk them out of this.
Blair pulled his gaze away from Jim and turned his attention back to the people standing in front of him. When they didn't challenge him, didn't question him, he rolled his eyes in disgust and crossed over to the ringing phone.
"What are you doing?" Cal demanded, pointing his weapon at Blair.
"Someone has to talk to these people," Blair said matter-of-factly, nodding toward the front of the bank. "Do you think you can handle that?"
The phone rang again, and again... Cal looked at it, licking his lips.
"Just let him answer it," Arnie whined. "The sound of all that ringing is making me crazy!"
Cal lifted his gaze to Blair, stared at him. "Answer it!" he barked at last.
Blair lifted the receiver, cutting off the shrill sound. "Hello?"
"This is Sheriff Kendall. Who is this?"
"Blair Sandburg."
"Blair. I'm right outside of the bank. Can you see me?"
Blair craned his neck, saw the sheriff crouched behind his car, a cell phone at his ear. "I see you," Blair confirmed.
"Good. Now, can you tell me if everyone inside is okay?"
"Everyone's fine."
"Good. That's good. Now I need you to listen to me, son. We've called in the State Patrol. Things would probably go a lot easier for you if you give yourselves up before they get here."
Suddenly it hit Blair--he thinks I'm one of them! He didn't know if it was stress from what was happening to him and the other hostages in the bank or if the misconception was funny in and of itself, but for some reason it struck Blair as hilarious. He had a sudden urge to laugh--really laugh. Okay, Sandburg, he coached himself, taking a deep breath, Get a grip here.
"Um, Sheriff," he spoke into the receiver, "You have this all wrong. You see, I'm not one of the people robbing the bank. I'm a customer."
"Just tell them to back off and let us leave!" Cal shouted from behind him. Blair turned toward Cal and saw that he was waving his gun around wildly. "Tell him... Tell him if he doesn't let us leave, we'll start killing the hostages!"
Emily gasped, her eyes going wide.
Blair stared at Cal, anger churning through him at the man's stupidity. Disgusted, he turned and hung up the phone.
/
/
/
Jim strained against the tape that was keeping his arms locked behind his back. Holding his breath, he watched Cal stalk across the lobby, toward Blair.
"What the hell do you think you're doing!" He lifted his gun and aimed the barrel at Blair's face. "I didn't tell you to hang up!"
Sandburg held his ground before Cal, his eyes locked steadily forward. "You can't threaten to kill the hostages unless you actually plan to do it."
One corner of Cal's mouth quirked up. His gaze--and the gun barrel--shifted to Jim. "I could do the cop. No prob
lem, man."
"Oh, yeah," Blair replied. "Now that's a plan. Shoot the cop and see if that doesn't make those guys outside a lot more willing to cooperate!" He shook his head and glared at Cal with open disdain. "What are you? Nuts?"
Just relax, Chief. Keep your cool...
"Listen man," Blair continued, his hands held out before him in a placating manner, "You need to think about this whole 'I'll just kill the hostages' thing before you say anything to the cops about it."
Beside Cal, Emily dropped her head, sighed wearily. "Let's just give ourselves up," she pleaded, her voice edged with desperation.
"We're not giving ourselves up, okay? I'm not going to jail!" Cal shouted. "And I'm not letting you go to jail, either, so stop worrying about it! You wanna turn out just like Momma? Is that what you want, Emily Ann?"
Momma? Jim's brow furrowed. The girl is his sister? Jim glanced at Blair and knew, from the expression on his face, that Sandburg had come to the same conclusion.
"Listen, man," Blair began again, his gaze shifting back to Cal, "Maybe you should listen to your sister."
"Maybe you should shut up!" Cal shouted, the gun back in Blair's face.
The phone began to ring again, causing everyone to jump. "I hate that sound!" Arnie yelled.
"That's going to be the sheriff, again" Jim said.
"And you still need a plan," Blair added, increasing the pressure on the already frazzled Cal.
Cal's hand was shaking again, and the gun wavered dangerously before Blair's face. Jim held his breath.
Come on, Cal. Use your head. Listen to him.
"Dammit!" Cal lowered the gun, exhaling audibly. "What's your plan?"
"That's better," Blair said simply. "You need a bargaining chip. A hostage."
Jim's heart began beating hard in his chest. He didn't like the sound of that--didn't like where this was going. No, Chief, don't do this. He twisted his hands again, hoping for some give in the tape, knowing if these three decided to leave with Blair, he would have no way of stopping them.
"You tell the cops," Blair was saying, his voice low, conspiratorial, "That unless they let you walk out of here with that money, you'll kill a hostage. Namely... me."
"No!" Jim blurted out before he realized he was going to speak.
Cal glared at him. "Shut up, cop," he said, then turned his attention back to Blair.
"I think that could work, Cal," Arnie interjected, his voice hopeful. "We should do that."
Cal studied Blair, his eyes narrowing slightly. "What makes you think they'll care if we threaten you? Some hippie drifter?"
"Drifter?" Blair repeated incredulously. "Hey man, I am no drifter. I've lived here my whole life."
Cal nodded toward the rack of brochures near the loan department, the place where Blair's pack sat on the lobby floor. "Liar," he accused. "I saw the backpack you're carrying. You don't live here. You're on the move, just like us."
Not giving Blair a chance to respond, Cal crossed to the phone and snatched up the receiver. "Sheriff? Here's the deal." He turned and swept his gaze across the hostages on the far side of the lobby. Smiling smugly, he spoke into the phone again: "I have a little girl in here. We're coming out and we're taking her with us. Unless you let us get in our car and drive away, she's dead!"
/
/
/
"Noooooo! No, you can't!"
Blair's gaze cut to the young mother as her cry of denial rang out.
"Don't let him do this," she pleaded with Blair, trying to block her daughter, who was now sobbing loudly. "Please! Don't let him do this."
Blair looked at her, helpless. This is my fault! It was my idea for them to take a hostage!
"It's okay," Blair tried to assure her. "Don't worry. It'll be okay." He turned to the girl beside him. "You can't let him do this, Emily. You know it's wrong."
She shook her head, her eyes wide. "I don't know. I don't know what to do."
Cal hung up the phone and turned to Blair. "They went for it," he announced triumphantly. "Get the girl."
"No. You don't need her," Blair argued.
"Didn't you hear what I just said! The cops already agreed to the terms." Cal raised his gun again, pointed it in Blair's face. "Now get the girl or get out of my way and I'll do it."
Blair lifted his hands in surrender, then turned and walked over to the woman and her child. Crouching down before them, he gave them a weak smile.
"Please don't take my little girl," the mother begged. "Please!"
"She's going to be all right," Blair tried to console her. "I'm not going to let anything happen to her. I promise you." He shifted his attention to the sobbing child. She stared up at him, her eyes wide, innocent. Tears streaked her cheeks and her bottom lip trembled as she fought to keep her crying under control. Gently, Blair brushed hair back from her forehead. "What's your name, honey?"
"Penny," she whispered, sniffing.
"Penny, my name is Blair. We're going to take you for a ride, but it's going to be just a short one, okay? I'll need you to be very brave. Can you do that?"
She looked up at her mom, who managed a slight smile, her eyes still wet with tears. Her mother nodded slightly. "I guess I can," she sobbed out, turning her attention to Blair again.
"Good girl." Blair shifted his attention to the mother. "I promise you, nothing is going to happen to her." Straightening, he leaned down and helped Penny to her feet, then gently lifted her into his arms. Penny rested her head against his shoulder as he stood.
Blair glanced at Jim as he walked slowly across the lobby, the young girl in his arms. He saw the look of fear that crossed his partner's face, knew the detective was chafing at his inability to defuse the situation. Blair opened his mouth to whisper to Jim that he would be all right, but before he could do so, Jim's voice rang out: "You've already got bank robbing against you," he called over to Cal. "This is kidnapping. You're just digging the hole deeper. Give it up!"
Cal pointed his gun at Jim. "I have had just about enough of you and your mouth, cop!" Slowly, Cal ran his thumb along the top of the gun, pulled the lever back, cocking the weapon.
Quickly, Blair closed the distance between himself and the robber. Acting like he didn't notice that the gun was readied for firing, Blair said, "Okay, man. We're ready. Are we going or what?"
"We?" Cal ground out, looking sideways at Blair but keeping his weapon trained on Jim.
"Yes, we. You haven't been able to pull this off on your own so far. What makes you think you can handle the rest without me?"
"You have a pretty high opinion of yourself, don't you?" Cal drawled out, contempt in his voice."
"Not at all," Blair answered, "But I know bad planning when I see it. You might as well face it, man. You need me. You aren't going to get out of this without me."
He's right," Arnie added, leaving his post at the door and walking up beside Blair.
"We need him," Emily added, moving over next to Arnie.
Blair held his breath. He couldn't let these people leave and take this little girl with them--not unless he went along as well. He couldn't put Penny in that kind of jeopardy. So if it meant becoming a part of this moronic little group for a while, he was willing to go along with them.
"Fine!" Cal exploded at last, causing Penny to flinch in Blair's arms. "Come on." He dropped the gun away from Jim and pushed it gently into Blair's rib cage. Stepping close, he glared into Blair's face and warned, "But you give me any trouble--any trouble at all--and you're dead."
Blair tightened his grip on Penny. The gun, where it was jabbed against his ribs, rested against one of Penny's legs. The little girl had begun to cry again. Nodding, Blair said, "Let's go." Turning, he strode confidently toward the front door.
He had almost reached it, had extended his arm to push at the handle, when Emily's voice called to him from behind. "Blair?" He turned toward the young woman, surprised she had used his name.
"Isn't this yours?" she asked, moving up to him. She held her a
rm out, his backpack dangling from her hand.
Blair glanced beyond her, back at Cal, and found him watching them. He didn't want to bring his pack, knowing that the items inside painted a different picture of who he was than the one he had presented to the robbers. But Cal knew it was his. Had pointed that out to him earlier. He had no choice.
Slowly, Blair nodded. "Yeah, it's mine. Thanks," he finished lamely. As he watched, Emily smiled and shifted the pack up over her shoulder.
Blair looked across the lobby one last time, his gaze locking with Jim's. Trying to ignore the fear and worry he saw in his partner's eyes, he gave Jim a quick, slight nod, hoping to indicate to the detective that he would be all right. Turning, he pushed the door open and walked out of the bank, Emily, Arnie and Cal behind him.
Part Two
Jim struggled to his feet as he listened to the car carrying his partner pull away from the front of the bank. Dammit Blair! He knew why Sandburg had talked himself into becoming a hostage, yet that knowledge did nothing to alleviate his fear and worry.
Just as Jim reached the front entrance, a man in a tan police officer's uniform pushed through the doors.
"Sheriff Kendall!" Jim heard the bank manager greet the officer. The sheriff's gaze swept past Jim to the bank manager, then over to the other hostages.
"Sheriff," Jim began, "My name is--"
"Just calm down, sir," the sheriff said, turning to Ellison and offering him a reassuring smile. "You're all right now, so--"
"I know I'm all right--"
"We'll have you loose in no time at all, son," the sheriff soothed. "Then you can call your family, let them know you're okay--"
"I don't want to make a phone call!" Jim snapped, all patience gone. "Would you just listen to me!"
The sheriff took a step away from Jim, clearly stunned by the outburst.
"My name is Jim Ellison," he explained, lowering his tone. As he spoke, he turned and offered his bound hands to the sheriff. "I'm a detective in the Major Crime Division of the Cascade PD."
"Well, I'll be!" the sheriff exclaimed as he peeled the tape off Jim's wrists.